"THE INFAMOUS SOOTHING SYSTEM OF PROFESSOR MAILLIARD"comedy/fantasy/horrorFlexible cast of at least 14M/F in any combination

This chilling and humorous play is adapted from a story by Edgar Alan Poe. Professor Mailliard runs a highly peculiar Lunatic Asylum using something he calls the "Soothing System". Our young hero arrives at this Institution at the height of a fabulous party. He meets the Professor's highly peculiar staff of nurses, doctors, and attendants. Or are they?

Four persons must change buses in the middle of nowhere. The station is meager: only a couple of benches, a soft-drink machine, and a crazy person, The Keeper of the Machine, who announces that they will not leave until one of them kills him (or her) and assumes his (or her) place as The Keeper of the Machine. Who is The Keeper? What is the significance of the Machine, which, no matter what selection YOU make, you always get Coke. Terrifying, dramatic, bizarre, and humorous.

The adventures of 4 young people driving to Grandma's for Christmas, who come to a traffic light at an intersection on a deserted stretch of highway just as the light is changing from green to RED. Driving the car is Camille, the leader of the expedition, the oldest, and also a person who drives at 55 mph because its the law. She obeys all laws.

So when the light does not change back to green after several minutes, Camille is more than willing to wait. They wait. And wait.

Sunset. In the desert. Four young people at a STOP LIGHT. A crossroads of Life. Where Duty and Citizenship intersect with Folly and Blind Obedience.

this play is published by and available from Encore Performance Publishing